Overview

• The summit opened at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson with a private one-on-one meeting, followed by delegation-level talks and a joint press conference.
• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was excluded from the initial talks, prompting a statement from 26 EU leaders that peace cannot be decided without Ukraine.
• The White House characterized the meeting as a “listening exercise” intended to gauge Putin’s intentions before arranging a trilateral follow-up involving Kyiv.
• President Trump said there was a 25 percent chance the talks could fail and warned he would end discussions swiftly if Putin refused to compromise.
• To facilitate Putin’s visit, the Treasury Department temporarily eased sanctions on top Russian officials, while base commanders withheld security and logistics details for operational security.